


The Monster, The Child, And The Revolutionary

by PurplMuffinXTRM



Series: Changing Tides (AU/Everyone Lives) [8]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Blackbeard is only mentioned, Drama, F/M, Family, Family Reunions, Gen, Hypothermia, Kidnapping, M/M, Meet the Family, Original Character-centric, Post-Marineford, Recovery, Rescue, Returning Home, Reunions, Sabo/Revolutionary Army focus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-24
Updated: 2018-11-24
Packaged: 2019-08-28 19:13:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16729113
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PurplMuffinXTRM/pseuds/PurplMuffinXTRM
Summary: After finishing a mission, Sabo finds something unexpected on an enemy pirate ship.





	The Monster, The Child, And The Revolutionary

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place about two years after an AU version of Marineford I have yet to write. Just know that in the version, Ace and Luffy were badly injured but they, along with Whitebeard, lived.

The Revolutionary chief of staff can do nothing but gape at the scene before him. He’s seen a lot of shit but he wasn’t expecting this. A kid is curled into a shaking ball in one of the corners of a pirate ship’s cargo hold.

Sabo sighs. He’s been in the Revolutionary Army long enough that he really shouldn’t be surprised by the despicable things people do. Although, he guesses he’s more disappointed than surprised. Disappointed that some people can sink so low as to keep a child barely older than a toddler as a… Sabo shakes his head. Not going down that dark hole of thought today, he tells himself. 

“Sabo-san.” Bunny Joe looks to the man in charge. “What do we do?” Robin watches them in silent curiosity.

“Make sure they aren’t hurt and get them out of here,” Sabo replies. How did it come to this, Sabo wonders. It was supposed to be a simple mission. Stop a group of tyrants, a pirate group allied with Blackbeard, from taking over a small country the Revolutionary Army had helped before. Wiping out the pirates had been easy. They’re all dead or in chains now. Of course, after dealing with them, they decided to raid their ship. Find more weapons to stockpile for the army. What Sabo and Bunny Joe weren’t expecting to find was a little kid in minimal clothing locked in the storeroom. Sabo knows some people are deranged but who the fuck does this to a kid, let alone one that’s barely out of the baby stages of life.

Bunny Joe crouches down. “Hey, kid.”

The kid flinches. Sabo guesses they’re a boy but he can’t be too sure. Long dark auburn hair covers their back. Their skin is pale and only covered by the long dark auburn hair that sticks to the sweat on their back and a thin pair of blue boxers.

“Kid,” Bunny Joe tries again. “We’re not going to hurt you. It’s okay. You can come out now. We’re not going to hurt you.”

There’s no response. Not even another whimper or flinch. His body continues to tremble.

“Did they pass out?” Sabo crouches down beside his comrade. He touches a hand to the child’s shoulder. “Shit.” He recoils. “The kid is freezing.”

“Damn. How long have they been down here? A cargo hold isn’t exactly the warmest place on a ship.”

“Don’t know. Let’s just get the kid out of here.” Sabo shrugs off his long black coat. He covers the kid with it before gently picking them up. The kid curls around themselves tighter but doesn’t protest. “Keep looking for supplies. I’ll send someone down to help.” Sabo turns and leaves the cargo hold still carrying the shivering form. Robin follows him. They reach the ship deck in no time at all. Sabo holds the kid in one arm, holding them tight against his chest. He puts the his free hand on the ship railing and vaults himself over. He lands in a crouch making sure to not jolt the kid too much. Robin uses her powers to make a set of steps.

“Chief Sabo!” A Revolutionary greets. “You’re done already?”

“No.” Sabo shakes his head. “Could you go help Bunny Joe finish up.”

The Revolutionary stares at him for a moment confused. Sabo doesn’t wait for an answer. The man notices the shaking bundle in his arms as the officer passes. “O R-right. Of course.”

The man heads to the ship pausing briefly to ask Robin what happened.

“Sabo-kun!” Koala calls out when she spots him approaching. “Are you abandoning your duties again?” She puts her hands on her hips.

“No. How are the villagers?”

“They’re fine. Thankfully we got here in time,” Hack reports.

Sabo nods. “Are any of them doctors?”

“Yes. There was one. Why? Is someone hurt?” Koala goes from irritated to worried in seconds.

“Not one of ours. Mind leading me to the doc.” Sabo’s reply is curt.

“Yeah, sure.” Koala frowns as she and Hack lead the young man to the a small one story building that seems to double as house and hospital. “Are you okay?”

“Fine.”

“Sabo-kun!” Koala spins on her heels and blocks the entrance to the house. “You’re starting to freak me out. What the hell is going on?”

There’s a whimper from Sabo’s coat.

“Easy, kid.” The child tries to make themselves smaller. “I’m taking you to get help.”

“What the?” Koala takes a step forward. “Who is that?”

“I don’t know.” Sabo pushes past his friend. Hack opens the door and walks in with the other man just as Robin catches up. “Thanks.” Upon walking in Sabo realizes the place really is just a house made into a hospital. The living room he walks into has been converted to resemble a waiting room mixed with a library. There are four doors along the back and right walls. A middle-aged man with graying hair and a white doctor’s lab coat stands, reorganizing a bookshelf.

The man turns to them as they walk in. “Hello.” He smiles. “Can I help you?” Sabo shifts the bundle in his arms so the doctor can see the kid’s face. “Oh my. Take her to the room on the far left. Cover her with as many blankets as you can. I will join you there in a minute.”

The doctor turns and goes through a different door.

Robin and the three Revolutionaries do as told. Sabo gently lowers the child on the bed in the room. Hack and Koala scavenge the room for sheets and blankets.

“They’re a boy,” Robin notes as she moves the child into what she deems to be a more comfortable position. Koala starts tucking the blankets around the shivering boy. After a few minutes, the doctor walks in.

“Where did you find her?” He asks.

“He was in the cargo hold of that pirate ship,” Sabo explains.

“How’d he get this bad?” Koala questions. “Storage spaces aren’t that much colder than the rest of a ship.”

“Being anywhere below body temperature without proper clothing can cause hypothermia.” The doctor pulls the blankets back slightly and takes the boy’s pulse. “To have gotten this far along, he’d have to have been there for at least two hours.” He shifts the blankets around checking the rest of the boy’s body before putting the blankets back in place. “It’s good you found him when you did. He has the start of frostbite in his feet. Nothing major but it could have gotten much worse.”

“Is there anything else wrong with him, Dr. Mallar,” Hack chimes in.

“He has severe bruising on his chest. Once he is warmer and more responsive, I’ll have to check his ribs for breaks and fractures. He has no open wounds, sores, or even scabs.” Dr. Mallar starts a machine next to the bed and puts an oxygen mask over the young boy’s face. “His pulse is weak and his breathing is slow but that’s normal in hypothermia cases. In the meantime, can one of you help me check his hands?”

“His hands?” Robin frowns even as Sabo steps up to help.

“He’s got a good grip on something.”

Sabo gently pulls the boy’s arms away from his body. Robin joins him in carefully prying his fingers open. She removes a piece of black material from his grasp.

“Nooo,” the boy whines and his eyes flutter open briefly. His arms flail loosely. Sabo and Dr. Mallar catch them. The doctor starts to examine them while Koala crouches down by the bed.

“It’s okay,” she tells the boy. “You’re safe here. Can you tell me your name?”

The boy blinks at her slowly. He whimpers as he tries to reach out but the doctor holds his arm back.

Sabo and Dr. Mallar release him and cover him back up. The boy curls in on himself again, eyes shut tight.

“Confusion and drowsiness are normal,” Dr. Mallar reasures. “He’ll be out of it for a while.”

“How are his hands,” Robin asks.

“Fine. They’re one of the warmest parts of him.”

“How is that possible?” Hack furrows his brows. “Fingers and toes are the first parts of a body to freeze.”

“Very true. It is probably thanks to the cloth he was holding.” The doctor starts setting up an IV drip.

“What is it?”

Robin holds up the torn cloth. It is a thin piece of black fabric. On the torn edges there are the remains of a white design. Two perpendicular lines connected by an arch that goes through one of the lines and ends at a point.

“Part of a symbol?” Sabo theorizes. “It might belong to the organization or island he was taken from.” Sabo shakes his head. “What’s going to happen to him Doc?”

“Worst case scenario, he gets pneumonia, which can be deadly in children. Best case scenario, he recovers fine without any lasting physical damage.”

***

Three days pass before the boy is coherent and awake enough to speak. In that time, Dr. Mallar has finished checking him and found no broken bones, and the Revolutionary Army has finished their business on the island but decided to stick around.

The boy is currently sitting up in the bed. He is pale and surrounded by blankets but the constant shivering has stopped. The oxygen mask has been removed. The IV drip is still connected to his hand. Sabo sits in a chair facing him. He smiles. “I’m Sabo. What’s your name kid?”

He stares at the men for a minute. “Ridley.”

“What’s the last thing you remember, Ridley?”

He looks away. His hands tangle themselves in his sheets. “I was on a ship. It’s hard taking care of a kid. Their food supply is low. I should be grateful. I wasn’t. They punished me.” He looks back to Sabo, his face blank. “Are you going to punish me too?”

“No. You’re safe here,” the Revolutionary reassures. “I can take you back home. What island do you come from?”

“I don’t.”

“Don’t what?” Sabo frowns. “Have a home?”

Ridley shakes his head. “I don’t come from an island. I was born on a ship. That’s my home.”

“You weren’t born on that ship were you?” Ridley shakes his head again. “Thank god.” Sabo sighs in relief. “Do you know where your home is?” He shrugs. “Of course you don’t,” Sabo mutters. “How old are you kid?”

“‘Pends on how long I was away.”

“It’s December 14th… 1527,” Sabo adds as an after thought.

“I’m five. October twenty first-” He yawns. “-is my birthday.”

“Get some rest kid. We’ll talk more later.”

***

Robin and Koala flip through books in the Revolutionary ship’s small library. Several tomes are stacked on the table in the middle of the room. Half the bookshelves are empty. Their contents either on the table or scattered across the floor. Although there is a certain organization to the mess. Koala sits on the floor surrounded by books, several are open to seemingly random pages. Robin stands at one of the fuller shelves, skimming a few books to see if they’ll be useful. If they are she sits at the table and reads further. If it’s not, she leaves it in the growing stacks of books on one side of the room. Occasionally passed between them is the torn cloth Robin took from Ridley.

Bunny Joe opens the door and pauses upon seeing the display.

“Did you need something,” Robin draws his attention.

It’s takes him a moment to look at her. “I was told to let you know, lunch is ready. Also, we’ll be setting sail in half an hour.”

“Thank you.” Robin smiles.

Bunny Joe nods and leaves the two women to their business.

“Ugh,” Koala groans. She throws down her book and buries her face in her knees.

***

Robin and Koala enter the mess hall carrying half a dozen books and the torn cloth. They find a place in the corner of the room to sit and read. They dive back into the books as they absently eat their food.

A few minutes later, Hack and Sabo walk into the room guiding Ridley. The five-year-old is dressed in too large borrowed black shorts and an even larger blue shirt that slips off one shoulder. He walks behind Sabo clinging to the man’s coat. They get their meals from the chefs before joining the two women.

“Make any progress?” Hack starts.

“No!” Koala slams her book closed. “Do you know how many symbols resembles!? It could be anything.” Koala groans and slumps down on the bench.

“The closest we’ve come to is that it may belong to a religious group,” Robin adds.

“Let me see it again,” Sabo requests.

Ridley shovels food into his mouth but his eyes are focused solely on the four adults next to him. He drops his fork when Robin hands Sabo the torn fabric.

“Home!”

Sabo turns to him with the fabric. “Ridley, you know what this symbol is.”

He nods. “It’s home. Can I have it back? It’s the only piece I have left. They ripped the rest.”

“Yeah sure.” Sabo surrenders the fabric. “I thought you said you don’t know where your home is.”

“I don’t.” Ridley uses the scrap cloth to tie hos long hair into a ponytail. “My home is a big big ship. How am I ‘possed to know where it is? You sound like the other people. ‘Where’s the ship? Where are they headed? What sea are they in? Is this person on board? What about this person? Where are they?’ It’s not like we stay in the same place. We’re always moving.” Ridley rolls his eyes and returns to eating. “Thank you,” he adds belatedly around a fork.

“No problem.”

“Ridley,” Robin gets his attention. “What is your home called?”

“Mama says not to tell strangers.”

“Even the ones that are trying to help you?”

The little boy shrugs. “You’re still strangers.”

“That’s not the only reason is it,” Hack questions.

Ridley freezes with his fork still in his mouth. He pulls it out and swallows slowly. “The others knew about my home. It made them mean.”

“Mean?” Koala ponders rekilling the pirates they fought.

“Yeah. At first, it was just yelling. But, they hit me a few times. Usually, they just leave me in the storage place when they get mad.”

“They’ve left you in there before?” She’s definitely going to kill them again.

“Yeah. Last time was longer than before.”

“Shit.”

“What is it Sabo-kun?” Koala demands.

“We distracted them.”

“What?”

“It’s our fault he got sick. We started a fight with them. Otherwise, they would have let him out earlier.”

“Fuck.”

“Please refrain from swearing around a child.” Robin’s smile is anything but sweet.

“It’s okay Robin-san. Mama gave up on that a long time ago.”

Robin shakes her head. “That doesn’t make it okay.”

He shrugs.

“I’m surprised they do anything worse,” Hack muses.

“Can’t leave peran- pern- permana- permanent marks on the bargin- bargaining chip, monster’s orders.”

“Monster?”

He nods. “They called him master or commander or whatever. I call him monster because he hurt Daddy before I was born.”

***

Ridley leans against the rail of the Revolutionary ship. Both arms dangle against the outside. He watches as the medium sized ship makes waves in the water.

“You feeling okay, Ridley?” Koala joins him. “You’re not seasick are you?”

“No. I’m not sick, Koala-san.” Ridley sighs. “I want to swim.”

“You want to swim?”

“Yeah. My dad was teaching me how. I’m not very good yet. I’m learning so I can get Mama or my uncles out of the water if they fall in.”

“Why can’t they swim?” Robin joins them.

“They ate a devil fruit.”

“All of them your uncles did?”

“No. Only some of them. I know Uncle ‘Mur and Uncle ‘Zo didn’t but Uncle Mar’ and Uncle Jo’ did.”

“Ah. I see. There are a lot of powerful people in your family.”

“Yeah. They’re really strong.”

“How big is your family?”

“Really really big!” He stands up suddenly and spreads his arms out. “Bigger than this.”

“Is everyone on your ship your family?”

“Uh huh. They’re the biggest bestest family ever! I have more aunts and uncles too! But they’re on other ships. Some I even haven’t met.”

“There’s part of your family you haven’t met?” Koala asks shocked.

“Yeah. ‘Cause he was was trainin’ and I was too little before.”

“I bet you’re big enough now.” Robin smiles.

“Yeah! I can’t wait to meet ‘im!”

“Mama says it’s her littlest brother. She has lotsa brothers but only a few are littler than her. But, Daddy has lotsa littler brothers and sisters.”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah! But, Mama and Daddy have the same brothers and sisters except for a few that are teckni- tekh- technikk- tech- ni- cally- only Mama’s.”

“Do you have any other family?”

“Uh huh. I have a grandpa and a great grandpa. Grandpops is the captain and Great Gramps is a marine. So, I don’t see Great Gramps lots.”

“Do you wish you could see him more?” Koala asks softly.

Ridley shrugs. “I don’t know. Great Gramps is really funny but he wants me to be a marine.”

Robin laughs. “Do you want to be a marine?”

“I don’t know.”

“Well, what do you wanna be when you grow up?” Koala crouches down in from front of him.

He shrugs and takes a great interest in his one size too large boot as he drags his foot along the deck. “Don’t know. Great Gramps is a marine. Mama and Daddy and Grandpops and my aunts and my uncles are all pirates. Mama says she has friends at her first home that are bandits and she has a bigger sister that owns a bar.”

“Have you thought about becoming a revolutionary?”

“Ref- revu- revolutina- revolutionary? What’s that?”

“I’m one and so are Sabo-kun and Hack-san.”

“What about Robin-san?”

“I’m a pirate.” Robin sits on the ground next to him. “I’m just traveling with them for a bit until I can return to my crew.”

“Oh. Where’s your crew?”

“Oh. Here and there. They’re all trying to get stronger.”

“That’s cool. I wanna be strong too. I wanna get rid of the monster. So, Mama and Daddy don’t have to worry about him anymore and they don’t have to be ‘fraid of him takin’ me.”

“I think they would still worry about other people taking you.”

“Maybe.”

***

The ship docks at a rocky desert like island.

Sabo looks down at his young charge. “Remember, you can never tell anyone where this is or that you were here.”

“Why?” Ridley tilts his head.

“Because it could be very bad.”

“Okay!” Ridley smiles. They head down the gangplank with Koala, Hack, and Robin.

“Sabo boy!” Ivankov runs up to them with his small body and poofy purple hair. He hugs the chief of staff. “Oh. How’s this?” Ivankov looks down at the small boy hiding behind Sabo and clinging to his pant legs.

“This is Ridley. I’ll explain everything later. I need to talk to Dragon-san.” He pushes past the newkama. “Stay close, kid,” Sabo orders.

Ridley nods, holding tighter to the man’s pants. He sticks a bit too close and ends up tripping most of the way into to the Revolutionary Army’s headquarters. Upon entering the building, Sabo pauses in his walk, reaches down, takes the boy’s hand from his pant leg, and holds onto it as he continues walking. Ridley looks up at him for a moment before letting himself get dragged off. Other Revolutionaries stare at them, greet the Cheif of Staff, and make no comment on the child.

Once in Dragon’s office, Sabo lets go. Ridley scrabbles for a hold on the man’s pants and hides slightly behind him under his coattails.

Dragon glances at the child but focuses his attention on his number two. “How was the mission?”

“Successful. The island is free and we acquired several things to add to the armory.”

“And the child?”

“We found him locked in the pirate’s ship. I’m going to take him home.”

“What about joining the army?” Dragon addresses the kid.

“Mama says I hafta wait ‘til I’m ten to make dek- deciz- decisions like that.”

“And where is your mother?”

“Home with my family.”

“He says he lives with his parents on a ship. We’ve had no luck finding out which one or where they could be. We think they’re either merchants or some kind of traveling religious group,” Sabo interrupts.

“What’s the ship called, boy?” Dragon gives the child a hard stare.

Ridley shakes his head and slips further behind Sabo.

Sabo sighs. “He’s not going to hurt you.”

Ridley just shakes his head again.

“Why do you hide, boy?”

Ridley looks between the two men. Finally, he settles for looking at Dragon. He moves to stand beside Sabo but still has one hand gripping the man’s clothes. “The last people I told tried to give me to the Monster. They got mad when I couldn’t tell them what they wanted to know.”

Dragon stands, walks around his desk, and kneels in front of Ridley. The boy flinches but holds his ground. “I am the leader here.” Dragon points to his office door. “All those people out there, they listen to me. None of them nor I will hurt you or use you for information. But, if you want to go home, I need to know where that is.”

Ridley chews his lip. “Moby Dick. I live on the Moby Dick.”

“Good. The Whitebeard Pirates.” Dragon stands at his full height. “I heard they’re heading towards Paradise.” He turns to Sabo. “Robin will need to leave soon too. Rest for a few days, then head for Sabaody. You’ll be able to meet the Straw Hats and the Whitebeards there.”

“Roger that.” Sabo grins.

***

Sabo sits with Ridley in the mess hall of the Revolutionary Army headquarters. They each munch of sandwiches, enjoying a calm lunch.

“So, you live with the Whitebeard Pirates,” Sabo starts after swallowing.

“Yeah.”

“Do you know someone named Ace?”

“How do you know Uncle Ace?” Ridley perks up.

“We used to play together when we were your age.”

“Really? That’s so cool!”

“How is he?”

Ridley tilts his head to the side with scrunched eyebrows. “What do you mean?”

“How is Ace? Is he happy?”

“Yeah! Him and Daddy play tricks on my other uncles all the time. “Uncle Mar’ gets mad sometimes but he never stays mad because he loves Uncle Ace.”

“Who loves Ace?”

“Uncle Mar’.”

“Does Ace love him?”

“Yeah. They even sleep in the same room like Daddy and Mama. They make kissy faces lots too.”

“That’s good. What about a girl named Ann?”

“Ann?”

“Do you know anyone named Ann?”

Ridley shakes his head.

Sabo sighs. “It’s a big crew. I’m not surprised you don’t know everyone.”

***

Ridley watches Koala and Hack as they train a group of soilders in Fishman karate. Hack leaves them to Koala and walks over to the small boy. “You want to learn?”

“No thanks.” Ridley grins. “Uncle ‘Mur said he’d teach me if I want.”

“Hmm. You’re an interesting little squirt.” Hack stares down at him. “Most kids are afraid of fishmen.”

“Really? Why?” Ridley tilts his head to the side as he stares up at the aging fishman. “Uncle ‘Mur is a fishman and he’s really awesome. I have some other fishmen uncles too. And you’re pretty cool.”

Hack chuckles. “Glad you think so.”

“Didn’t you say you want to get stronger?” Robin joins them.

“Yeah.”

“Wouldn’t learning fishman karate make you stronger?”

“Well yeah. But, I can’t learn lotsa things at the same done or I won’t do any of them good.”

“The kid has a point.” Hack sits on the ground next to him.

Robin crouches down. “What are you working on now?”

“This.” He lifts one of his arms, his hand in a fist at the end. Black spreads across his fist and travels up his arm. Soon his whole body is covered.

“Armament haki,” Robin muses. “Quite impressive. Can you use the others?”

He nods. “Sabo-san and Iva-san are in that hall.” He points to part of the building on their right. “They’re heading this way. And Mama says I might have concer- conquar- conkerer’s haki because she has it.”

“You’re going to become a very strong man.”

“You really think so?”

“Yes.” Robin smiles.

Sabo and Ivaonkov walk up to them. Koala joins them as well. The soldiers in training heading off to do other tasks.

“Are you all ready to go?” The chief of staff asks.

“Is Iva-san coming with us?” Ridley leans back to see the newkama.

The Ridley Sea Turtles are a rare species in the South Blue.”

Ridley giggles. “They live near the island Mama was born on.”

“You were named after a turtle,” Koala snorts.

“You were named after a aminal that can’t decide if it’s a bear or not.”

Sabo snickers.

“Shut up Sabo-kun.” Koala punches her friend.

***

Ridley bounced across the deck of the Revolutionary ship. He comes to a stop in front of Robin. “We’re almost there!”

“I see that.” Robin gives him an amused smile.

“Do you think Mama and Daddy will really be there? I don’t see their boat anywhere.”

“Well, the Moby Dick is a really big boat, they probably had to dock it somewhere else or take a smaller boat to shore. Even if your parents aren’t here, I’m sure some of the Whitebeard pirates are.”

“Okay.”

He bounces away. He runs over to a man coming up from below deck. “Sabo-san! We’re almost there!”

***

Sabo holds Ridley’s hand as they wander around the archipelago with Hack, Koala, and Robin. They’re currently in one of the shopping grooves but are making their way toward Shacky’s Ripoff Bar.

“It’s Uncle Marco,” Ridley exclaims pointing to a blonde man exiting one of the shops. Ridley pulls away from Sabo.

The chief of staff holds him back. “Ridley, you can’t just run off. We’ll walk over together.”

“Ok.” Ridley The little boy pouts. They continue walking. “Uncle Marco!” Ridley calls for the man’s attention. “Uncle Mar’!!”

The blonde man stops and looks back at the store he just exited. He says something but none of them can here hear it. A pompadoured man walk leaves the shop. He says something to Marco and they turn to walk away from the group of five tailing them. Ridley rips his hand away from Sabo’s grasp and runs forward.

“Ridley,” Sabo calls out as they chase after the small boy.

The five-year-old ducks under arms and between legs. The four adults push through crowds and elbow people to get past. They catch up just as Ridley throws himself at the pompadoured man managing to hook his arms around the man’s waist. “Daddy!”

“Ridley!” Thatch picks the boy up and holds him close. Ridley wraps his arms around his father’s neck.

“Jeez kid, you can’t just run off like that,” Koala wheezes. “What if it wasn’t your dad?”

“Who are you?” Marco questions with the same bored expression he always has. The Revolutionaries and Straw Hat pirate introduce themselves.

“We found him a few weeks ago,” Sabo explains.

“Thank you for bringing my son home.” Thatch grins holding his son on his hip.

Marco nods in agreement. “Care to meet up later? I’d like to know what happened.”

***

Luffy sits on the ground outside Shacky’s bar. Ace and Ann stand nearby leaning against the walls of Ripoff. The youngest looks up at the twins as they chat about nothing and everything.

“Captain,” Robin calls as she approaches them with the three revolutions revolutionaries.

“Robin!” Luffy jumps to his feet. “Welcome back.”

“Good to see you, Captain.”

“Where were you?”

“I stayed with the Revolutionary Army.”

“So, you met my dad?”

Robin nods.

“Who’re your friends?”

Robin steps out of the way do so Luffy can get a better look at them. “They’re from the Revolutionary Army.”

“Hello.” The female waves. “I’m Koala. This is Hack.” She gestures to the fishman beside her but makes no move to introduce her other the man in a top hat.

“And you?” Ace crosses his arms.

The man grins beneath his hat. He looks doesn’t look any of them in the eyes. He removes the hat revealing a mess of l blonde locks. He looks up at the three siblings. Black eyes stare at them from behind a burn scar in on the left side of his face.

“No way.” Luffy takes a step back.

“How the hell?” Ace’s stance falters.

“It can’t be,” Ann gasps.

“It’s been a while.” Sabo’s smile never falters.

“Sabo. But you can’t be. Prove it.”

“Luffy-” Ron Robin tries to step in.

“It’s fine, Robin.” He addresses her quickly and turns back to his siblings. He closes one eye. “We stole a bottle of Sake from Dadan and swore an oath.”

“Sabo!” Luffy jumps up and hugs the man’s face. His legs around his older brother’s shoulders. “I thought you were dead.”

Sabo lets him have his moment before yanking his head away from Luffy’s chest with a gasp for breath. Sabo grins up at him. “Hey, Luffy.”

“Sabo?” Ace walks up to them. He looks Sabo up and down half expecting to find that the man isn’t real.

“Long time no see, Ace.” Sabo turns to his other brother, Luffy still sobbing over his head. “I’m glad you’re alive.”

“I’m glad you’re alive too,” Ace half mumbles in disbelief. “But, how are you alive?”

Ann stays behind Luffy and Ace. She leans heavily on the wall of Ripoff, hands pressed to her mouth, and tears streaming down her cheeks as she holds back sobs. She nods her head along to Ace’s question.

“I was saved by Dragon-san after the Celestial Dragon blew up my ship. When I woke up, I couldn’t remember anything. I just knew that I didn’t want to go back to my parents.” They nod, excepting his answer. Luffy releases him and clambers to the ground. Ace hugs Sabo next.

“Hey, Sabo? How did you know your name was Sabo if you couldn’t remember?” Luffy questions.

“My name was sown into my clothes by someone.”

Ace releases Sabo and he is passed along to Ann who has calmed down but hasn’t left the support of the wall. She hugs him tightly. “I’m so happy to see you again,” she whispers. “Don’t do that to me again.”

“I’ll try not to, Ruth.” He grins. She chuckles and wipes away the last of the tear tracks as she pulls away.

“You better not.”

“Sabo,” Ace gets his attention again. “How did you get your memory back?”

“I got it back two years aga ago when I saw what happened at Marineford in the news. For a while there, I thought I remembered only to find out my brothers are dead.”

Ace smiles weakly.

“Party,” Luffy declares. “We’re all together again. We need to celebrate.”

“Maybe later Lu.” Ace glances back at his twin.

“You alright Ann? It wasn’t me was it?” Sabo frowns.

“No.” Ann shakes her head. “I’m happy your here. I’m really glad you’re alive. It’s like one of the best birthday presents ever. It’s just… a lot has happened in the last few months.”

Sabo nods, accepting the answer even if she is holding something back. Although the birthday present comment catches him a little off guard. That’s right, it’s New Years night, he thinks. Ace and Ann’s birthdays are tomorrow. He’ll have to stick around for a while.

“What brings you to Sabaody?” Ace changes the subject and interrupts Sabo’s train of thought.

“I was escorting Robin here and to be honest, I was hoping to run into all of you. To see you again. We also had some other business to deal with but that’s taken care of.”

Robin excuses herself, as does Koala and Hack. They enter the bar leaving the four reunited siblings to catch up.

Some time later, as Sabo, Ann, Ace, and Luffy are all standing there chatting, Sabo notices something out of the corner of his eye. It’s the two pirates he ran into and the little boy he left in their care. They’re sneaking through the trees of the groove. Sabo doesn’t draw attention to them but he keeps one eye on them. They can’t be doing any harm as they are Ann and Ace’s crew mates but one can never be too cautious. When they are closer to the bar, creeping along one side of it, Ridley runs forward and charges at Ann.

“Mama!”

Ann drops to her knees and hugs the boy close trying to keep from sobbing again. “Edward D. Ridley, don’t you ever scare me like that again.”

“I’m sorry Mama.”

She pulls back suddenly, holding him at arm’s length. “You’re not hurt are you?”

“No. Sabo-san made sure of that.”

“Sabo-san…” She looks up to see the wide eyes of her younger brother.

“I- I- I didn’t..”

“You’re the one we ran into earlier,” Thatch notes as he and Marco catch up. “The one who helped Ridley.”

Ace looks back and forth between Thatch and Sabo. “What the hell is going on?”

Ann laughs and stands up, lifting Ridley as she moves. “Ridley.” The little boy looks at his mother confused. “I’d like you to officially meet your Uncle Sabo and Uncle Luffy.”


End file.
